For months, one guy has been “borrowing” his coworker’s carefully prepped lunches, and it’s only gotten worse.

One day, after catching him in the act, the fed-up employee loses it—loudly.

Read on for the story!

AITA for finally exploding at my coworker over his constant lunch thefts?

I work in a mid-sized corporate office on the third floor of a building with an open floor plan.

Our space is a mix of low cubicle dividers and a few private offices lining the perimeter.

The break room—a cramped, hectic space nestled between HR and a set of tiny conference rooms—is where the drama unfolds.

It’s equipped with two microwaves, a perpetually overstuffed fridge, and that sad, temperamental coffee machine we all pretend doesn’t exist.

For the past few months, I’ve had this coworker—let’s call him Jake—who has developed a disturbing habit.

Every day, without fail, Jake somehow ends up “forgetting” to bring his lunch.

Perhaps he has amnesia…

At first, he’d politely ask for a bite of my chicken, rice, and roasted vegetables (my carefully prepped meal that I rely on not only for nutrition but also to keep my budget intact).

I would laugh it off, thinking he was just having a bad day.

But then it escalated.

Last Tuesday, I came back to the break room after a long meeting only to find my lunch completely missing.

I asked around, and whispers soon confirmed that Jake had taken it.

When I confronted him later, he shrugged it off, saying, “It’s just food, man.”

That’s when it all started to build up—the disrespect wasn’t just about one missing meal; it was about the constant disregard for my effort and time.

I’d been putting up with it for weeks, silently counting every stolen bite.

The AUDACITY, honestly.

Determined not to let it slide any longer, that same day I returned to the break room with a fresh container of my meal.

I caught sight of Jake eyeing it like a kid in a candy store.

That was my breaking point.

I exploded. I shouted, “Jake, enough is enough! Every single day, you shamelessly take my food without even a thank-you or an apology! I work hard to prepare these meals to save money and eat healthily, and you’re treating it like a free-for-all buffet! Do you have any idea how disrespectful that is? It’s not just about the food—it’s about my time, my effort, and my dignity!”

The room fell silent.

Some coworkers looked shocked, others nodded as if they’d been silently suffering the same fate.

Jake’s face went beet red, and he mumbled a weak apology.

Yeah, that isn’t going to fly, Jake.

I didn’t stop there.

I continued, “If you can’t take responsibility for yourself, then stop acting like our lunches are a communal potluck. I’m not your personal food ATM, and I won’t let you take advantage of me any longer!”

Following my outburst, HR got involved.

Jake was reprimanded and warned that any future incidents would have serious consequences.

Now, a few coworkers are telling me I overreacted—that it was “just lunch.” But honestly? This wasn’t about a single meal; it was the culmination of months of feeling disrespected and taken for granted.

So, Reddit—AITA for finally losing it over my coworker’s repeated lunch thefts, or was my explosion long overdue?

Okay, basically, HR gets involved, Jake gets a warning, and the office is left in shock.

Was this a full-on meltdown, or was it a long time coming?

Reddit votes 100% NTA.

This person applauds OP for standing up for himself.

This person says they’re not in the wrong, but maybe he could’ve toned it down a bit.

But this person says there was no overraction at all.

Turns out, stealing lunch might just be the recipe for getting served a big helping of drama.

Once again, someone has a hard time finding out that actions have consequences. Oops.

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